LocationsSupreme Court of Pakistan inaugurates its first Court-Annexed Mediation Centre
August 18, 2026
Islamabad, 18 August 2026: The Supreme Court of Pakistan today inaugurated its first Court-Annexed Mediation Centre (CAMC), established under the European Union (EU)-funded Deliver Justice Project and in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The Centre marks an important step towards strengthening alternative dispute resolution in Pakistan and helping reduce the country’s case backlog.
The ceremony brought together members of the judiciary and legal fraternity, development partners, and accredited mediators trained by UNDP under the same EU-funded initiative.
H.E. Mr. Raimundas Karoblis, Ambassador of the EU to Pakistan, Ms. Van Nguyen, Officer-in-Charge, UNDP Pakistan and members of the Supreme Country’s ADR Committee unveiled the plaque in the presence of the Hon'ble Mr. Justice Yahya Afridi, Chief Justice of Pakistan.
Hon'ble Mr. Justice Shahid Waheed speaking at the inauguration ceremony.
Underlining the role of mediation in reducing case backlog, the Hon'ble Mr. Justice Shahid Waheed, Chairman, Supreme Court ADR Committee, said, “The inauguration of this Centre marks a milestone in the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s reform journey. We remain committed to strengthening multiple pathways for people to access justice. This is crucial now more than ever to not just reduce the burden on courts but also to ensure swift relief to the people we serve.”
With support from the EU, UNDP has partnered with the Singapore International Mediation Centre and the Federal Judicial Academy to train 72 judges from across Pakistan in accredited mediation. The initiative has also supported the establishment of seven CAMCs with the Balochistan High Court and raised legal awareness among over 2,800 people across the province, over half of them women, about mediation as an alternative pathway for justice.
H.E. Mr. Raimundas Karoblis, Ambassador of the European Union to Pakistan, delivering remarks at the event.
On this occasion, H.E. Mr. Raimundas Karoblis, Ambassador of the European Union to Pakistan, said, “Today’s inauguration is a strong sign of shifting the judicial culture – whereby at the highest of levels, we are moving mediation from a peripheral or optional experiment into an endorsed, mainstream pillar of the justice system. The EU is proud to have supported this cultural shift toward cooperative problem-solving and settlement rather than adversarial gridlock allowing to do what is the title of the EU-funded project: “deliver justice!”
To assess the effectiveness of these centres, UNDP conducted a study across five districts of Balochistan between 2024 and 2025. It found case settlement rates ranging from 70 to 90 percent, with almost no cases returning to court after agreements were reached. Moreover, most disputes were resolved within two to four weeks, compared with conventional court proceedings that can take months or even years. In some districts, mediation referrals contributed to a 30 percent reduction in pending family-court cases. Users of these centers also described the process as quick and fair.
Ms. Van Nguyen, Officer-in-Charge, UNDP Pakistan, speaking at the event.
Thanking the European Union and the Supreme Court of Pakistan for their longstanding partnership, Ms. Van Nguyen, Officer-in-Charge, UNDP Pakistan, said: “The extension of these centres to the Supreme Court signifies our shared commitment to shaping a justice system that people associate with ease and quick relief. We hope this Centre will encourage the wider adoption of mediation and advance faster, more affordable and people-centred justice across Pakistan.”
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For further details, please contact:
• Fizza Bangash, Communications Analyst, UNDP Pakistan, at fizza.bangash@undp.org
• Samar Saeed Akhtar, Communications, Press and Information Officer, samar-saeed.akhtar@eeas.europa.eu, Delegation of the European Union to Pakistan
About the Deliver Justice Project:
The 20 Million Euro “Deliver Justice Project”, is fully funded by the European Union and aims to support reform processes to ensure the delivery of people-centered justice, enhance access to justice for all, particularly women and less privileged groups, and improve service delivery of the security sector in line with constitutional safeguards and international standards in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including the Merged Districts and Balochistan. The project is funded by the EU and jointly implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
The UNDP Rule of Law Programme is implementing a range of interventions to enhance security and justice sector governance in Pakistan.
About UNDP:
UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet.
